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4.13 AVERAGE
4.13 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
informative
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Started and finished in a day, wonderfully written. Heartbreaking stuff. Hope snuffed out, more hope, more violence, more pain, hope... But it is wonderfully human throughout it all. The main character, Daiyu, is such a profound narrator. Just believable, human, fallible, but noble and strong. Also that this covers a time in our history as a country that is often glossed over, the Chinese exclusion act and rampant race-driven violence against Chinese Americans. Valuable read.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
challenging
dark
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Hate crime, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Slavery, Torture, Xenophobia, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Sexual harassment, War
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Rape, Sexual violence, Xenophobia, Trafficking, Abandonment
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Colonisation
adventurous
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Daiyu, named for Lin Daiyu of a tragic story, is kidnapped from China after a series of events which leave her orphaned. She is sold to a brothel in Sam Francisco, and escapes, heading to Idaho disguised as a boy. Here, she will stay disguised and eke out a meagre existence - until she dares hope to change things, before returning to China.
This book is heartbreaking, bleak, and overwhelmingly sad, and yet despite its tragedy, there is hope. This is a beautifully written and complex debut, exploring the Chinese Exclusion Act in America, and the racial tensions of being Asian American - even when you didn’t want to be there in the first places. Daiyu is a challenging character but ultimately a wonderful narrator. This is a beautiful read, despite the tough subject matter.
This book is heartbreaking, bleak, and overwhelmingly sad, and yet despite its tragedy, there is hope. This is a beautifully written and complex debut, exploring the Chinese Exclusion Act in America, and the racial tensions of being Asian American - even when you didn’t want to be there in the first places. Daiyu is a challenging character but ultimately a wonderful narrator. This is a beautiful read, despite the tough subject matter.
A well-researched and important book but just so relentlessly hopeless which made for tough reading. I felt sick to my stomach by the time I finished the book.
Please read the trigger warnings before picking this up.
Please read the trigger warnings before picking this up.
4.5 — half a star taken off because no quotation marks for NO REASON. but an amazing, beautiful story!!
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Artfully written. A beautifully, tragic story with wonderful symbolism and imagery.
Four Treasures of the Sky covers a part of American history that has been significantly limited in public education and general history. Similar to Black History and Indigenous history and the history of many marginalized groups in the US. I barely learned about the Chinese Exclusion Act and this book was able to highlight how it affected the everyday Chinese people who it was inflicted upon.
The use of magical realism created tension and hope. Although the story focuses on the main character, Daiyu, the story becomes even richer as each side character is introduced. These characters help build a more realistic picture of Chinese life in America during the mid-to-late 1800s as well as illuminate multiple aspects of the MC’s culture and experience.
Favorite Quotes
“I am beginning to realize that everyone has two faces to them: the face they show to the world and the one on the inside, that keeps all its secrets. I still do not know who my faces are, or which one is which.”
Favorite Quotes
“I am beginning to realize that everyone has two faces to them: the face they show to the world and the one on the inside, that keeps all its secrets. I still do not know who my faces are, or which one is which.”
“English, it seems, is a matter of timing and chaos.”
“The inkstone asks for destruction before creation—you must first destroy yourself, grind yourself into a paste, before becoming a work of art.”
“I am the constellation of all the names within me, of every name I have ever inhabited. And this is the truth I see for the first time: I have only been able to survive because of my name.”
“I never thought about it before, but every cloud I have ever seen must have been on its way to somewhere. Those who witness clouds only ever see a moment of their journey. In this way, I could call myself a cloud.”